Potent UT may create men's basketball thunder

Potent UT may create basketball thunderReturn of duo, influx of talent likely to generate national noise

Published 6:30 am, Friday, November 13, 2009

AUSTIN — The Texas Longhorns begin this season as the third-ranked men's basketball team in the country in large part due to the abundance of young talent they have gained. But if the Longhorns live up to their billing, it will have just as much to do with what they've lost.

There were moments last spring when it seemed possible neither would still be at UT today. Pittman and James considered turning pro, and James went so far as to declare himself eligible for the NBA draft.

But now they're the leaders of a deep, athletic group that could prove to be the best Rick Barnes has coached.

“The challenge really will be, ‘How do we bring it all together?' ” Barnes said.

No matter how they do it, Pittman figures to be in the middle of it. The 6-10 senior from Rosenberg came on strong at the end of last season, averaging 15.4 points and 10.4 rebounds during five postseason games. But after the Longhorns (23-12 last season) were eliminated in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Pittman's work didn't stop.

“I went to the extreme,” Pittman said. “I didn't want to come back and have people say I was a fluke.”

Last season, Pittman was limited because even though his conditioning had improved, Barnes still could count on him for only about 20 to 24 minutes per game. His grueling offseason workouts should change that. Three years after reporting to UT at 400 pounds as a freshman, Pittman now checks in at 290.

“I need smaller clothes,” Pittman said, laughing.

Bradley tops talent pool

His role, though, should be larger.

Outside of Pittman, the Longhorns have at least 12 players with the versatility to give Barnes a plethora of lineup options. James will start at power forward, and freshman Avery Bradley — the biggest jewel of Barnes' acclaimed recruiting class and the player rated by ESPNU as the nation's top prospect — will start at shooting guard.

The other spots are interchangeable, with Houstonian Gary Johnson, Clint Chapman and Alexis Wangmene providing depth on the frontcourt; Jordan Hamilton (a sharpshooting freshman from California), Justin Mason and Shawn Williams on the wing; and Varez Ward, J'Covan Brown (a freshman from Port Arthur) and Houstonian Jai Lucas (a Florida transfer who will become eligible in December) all capable of running the point.

So UT, which has made the Sweet 16 in five of the past eight seasons, should be able to play a variety of styles. But it's no secret they want to take advantage of the mismatches created by Pittman, whose confidence is apparently soaring.

“He's like, ‘I'm Dex, and can't nobody stop me,' ” James said.

UT is hoping to see some of that same bravado from James, who averaged 15.4 points and 9.2 rebounds last season but often played tentatively. When he worked out and interviewed with NBA teams during the draft process last spring, some scouts asked him why he wasn't more of a leader.

Tough sledding ahead

James took that message to heart.

If anything, he said, his exposure to the NBA gave him more reasons to believe in himself during his senior season. And when the Longhorns negotiate their way through a brutal schedule that include four other members of the preseason top 12 (No. 6 North Carolina in Arlington on Dec. 19, No. 2 Michigan State in Austin on Dec. 22, No. 12 Connecticut in Storrs, Conn., on Jan. 23 and No. 1 Kansas in Austin on Feb. 8), James vows they won't struggle for a lack of leadership.

“We know who we have to follow,” James said, “and who we have to answer to.”